The Philippine National Police on Tuesday revealed that five police officers who were involved in the case of a missing online cockfighting master agent in Laguna last year have been dismissed from the service.

PNP chief Police General Rodolfo Azurin Jr. signed the dismissal order against Staff Sgt. Daryl Panghangaan, Pat. Roy Navarete, Lt. Henry Sasaluya, Master Sgt. Michael Claveria and Pat. Regil Brosas over the alleged kidnapping of Ricardo Lasco, an e-sabong master agent who was abducted from his residence in San Pedro town in 2021.

PNP spokesperson Col. Jean Fajardo said the move was based on the recommendation of the Internal Affairs Service, which found substantial evidence against the suspects, adding that the policemen are currently under restrictive custody at the Calabarzon regional police headquarters.

"Once they receive the official copy of their dismissal order then the PNP will let go of them because the PNP no longer has jurisdiction over them. They need to receive it officially so that at least they will be given the opportunity, as part of the due process, to appeal the recommended penalty," Fajardo said.

The Department of Justice — in a resolution dated 25 November but was only made public on Monday — found probable cause to indict Panghanggan, Navarette and Brosas on charges of robbery and kidnapping while it cleared Sasaluya and Claveria.

The Criminal Investigation and Detection Group, meantime, welcomed the indictment.

"This just proves that justice never sleeps. We are happy with the release of this recommendation and we hope that we will also be able to resolve the other cases of the missing victims," said CIDG chief Brig. Gen. Ronald Lee.

State prosecutors considered the testimonies of all the witnesses, as well as the closed circuit television footage of the kidnapping of Lasco, sufficient to establish the case.

The suspects were positively identified by the witnesses based on their statements and other pieces of evidence as the group that entered the house of Lasco, introduced themselves as National Bureau of Investigation personnel and arrested the victim by virtue of a purported arrest warrant for large scale estafa on 30 August 2021 in Barangay San Lucas 1.

They also took with them personal belongings and cash of the victim and his relatives amounting to over P10.4 million.